Tag Archives: The Sunday Age

Nearly 80 per cent of Australian children under 10 years of age use social networks. Among older teenagers – those 16 and 17 – parents underestimate bullying and risky online behaviour. But the most likely candidate for cyber-bullying is a 14 year old girl who checks her Facebook account daily.

By the time teenagers are 16, parents start to underestimate the likelihood of their child being bullied or involved in upsetting experiences. Only 17 per cent of parents said their 16-year-old was bothered by something on the internet, but 26 per cent of teenagers of that age said they suffered through an upsetting experience.

What is of concern is that once parents believe that their work is done, that their children know how to successfully navigate the social media world is when they are actually most at risk.

The Sunday Age has reported on two 12 year old girls who have social media accounts, but are well aware of the pitfalls they can face:

”Basically, I don’t post anything that I don’t want my parents to see,” said Georgia, who admitted her parents check her Skype, Instagram and Kick about once a month.

Eve, who uses Skype and iMessage, says her parents trust her not to accept requests from strangers. And the information she posts online is unlikely to reveal too much about her private life. ”It’s really important not to give too much information about yourself away.”